CycleDigest August 2013

Table of Contents:

From the Editor

Welcome to the August issue of CTC's CycleDigest.

Congratulations are due to the eight cities and four national parks who've been awarded significant central government funding for cycling.

Although the amount each city has to spend on each of its citizens varies, between them it amounts to around £10 per person per year and, happily, this is the sum recommended by the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group's (APPCG) 'Get Britain Cycling' report, published in April.

This is good news for the cities, of course, but the new cycle funding only covers one tenth of Britain's population for two years, so an enduring commitment to spend £10 per person annually wherever they live would be far better - and just think what could be done with double! £20 per person per year is, after all, the APPCG's long-term ambition.

One way of helping reach that goal is to urge your MP to attend the 'Get Britain Cycling' debate on Parliament's first day back on 2 September. It's really easy to send them a letter!

Headlines

Demonstrating the political leadership that CTC has long been calling for, Prime Minister David Cameron announced earlier this month that the government in England is investing £millions in cycling.

This government wants to make it easier and safer for people who already cycle as well as encouraging far more people to take it up and business, local government, developers, road users and the transport sector all have a role to play in helping to achieve this.”

David Cameron, PM.

£77.2m over two years goes to eight English ‘cycling cities’ - Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham, Newcastle, Bristol, Cambridge, Oxford and Norwich - equating to around the optimal £10 per head between them; and £16m for cycling in four national parks - New Forest, Peak District, South Downs and Dartmoor.

The Highways Agency will also be spending £4.8m on upgrades to its network to help cyclists and a further £15m on ‘cycle-proofing’ in 2015/16.

As mentioned in last month’s Digest, the House of Commons will be debating the All Party Parliamentary Cycling Group’s 'Get Britain Cycling' report on 2 September.

It’s the MPs’ first day back after the summer recess and we hope they’ll be refreshed and keen to back the report's calls for new cycle-friendly design standards, for the positive promotion of cycling and for long-term funding that will get all of Britain cycling, along with the eight cities already favoured with a cash injection (see above).

According to the Department for Transport (DfT), cycle use has gone up in the last two years, from 49 miles per person in 2011 to 53 miles in 2012. Most of this seems to be down to people making longer journeys by bike - the average cycle trip is now 3.2 miles long, 45% longer than it was 10 years ago.